Former Beds Police officer used systems to search for details about family member

Bedfordshire Police

Published:14:55Monday 03 September 2018

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A former Bedfordshire Police officer who accessed police systems to check on a case involving his relative has been found to have committed gross misconduct.

Former PC David Holmes searched for information on an ongoing case on 15 April 2013 and 7 December the same year. There was no evidence that he passed the information onto a third party.

An investigation was carried out by the Beds, Cambs and Herts professional standards department and as a result a special case hearing for gross misconduct was heard at Police HQ in Kempston on Thursday, August 30.

Chief Constable Jon Boutcher found that PC Holmes’ conduct amounted to gross misconduct for confidentiality and discreditable conduct. The sanction was deemed to be a final written warning had he been a serving officer – he resigned in April.

Mr Boutcher said: “It is a personal frustration that former PC Holmes accessed this material some five years ago.

“I am inherently aware of the trust put in police to hold such data and of the negative impact such a misuse of police systems has on the trust that we rely on from our communities.”